Bridging courses

Important

If you are feeling unwell please do not attend campus and advise our Student Hub team. If you have been to any of the locations noted on the NSW Government website, please adhere to NSW Government advice.

Biology

The Biology bridging course is highly recommended if you have not studied Biology and are planning to undertake a degree at University that includes Biological Sciences.  The aim of this course is to provide students with the necessary background to undertake Biology at University, rather than cover all topics in Higher School Certificate Biology.  The course covers material in both Autumn and Spring Sessions:

• Autumn - evolution, biodiversity and ecology (BIOL104), functional biology of plants and animals (BIOL105)
• Spring - biochemistry, cell structure and function, genetics, and energy metabolism (BIOL103)

The course includes a combination of lectures, tutorials and practicals.  

Chemistry

The Chemistry bridging course is highly recommended for high school leavers without Higher School Certificate Chemistry (HSC), and those thinking of studying Chemistry at University (who do not have a background equivalent to HSC Chemistry). This subject covers fundamental aspects of Chemistry, normally dealt with in high school chemistry, and will provide the necessary foundation for 1st year Chemistry studies. Topics will include:

• Matter, calculations, atomic theory and bonding
• Nomenclature: naming chemical compounds and chemical equations
• Stoichiometry: quantities in chemistry
• Atomic weights and molecular weights; the mole; percentage composition by mass; empirical formulae; molecular formulae; relationship of moles to mass in chemical equations; reaction yield; solution stoichiometry, 

as well as three (3) hour lab class: EXPERIMENT 1: Solubility and EXPERIMENT 2: Synthesis of a Compound

Physics

This course is recommended for students enrolling in any first-year Physics course, who have a limited background in physics.  The course has been designed to provide students with an introduction to those concepts in Physics, that appear to defy common sense, and are consequently most often misunderstood. These concepts include the nature of forces and their role in motion, work and energy. Difficulties with these concepts generally hamper progress in other areas of Physics. 

The topics discussed with include motion, vectors, coordinate systems, Newton’s Laws, gravitation, conservation laws, measurements and uncertainties.  The course will include lectures, tutorials and practical work in our undergraduate physics laboratories with the emphasis on problem-solving and learning by example.